Stormwater All Trickles Down To Us

Surface water provides a great deal of our drinking water supply in Texas and as a result, rainfall is very important to our health and well-being. Though rainfall provides us with a clean resource, man-made pollution can have a serious effect on the water that will one day flow from our faucets.

Stormwater is rainfall that doesn’t sink into the soil when it hits the ground, but runs off usually into the nearest drain, creek or stream. Though most would never consider pouring a contaminate into a waterway, one may not realize that poor land management practices, such as using too much fertilizer in one’s yard, could cause serious harm to lakes, rivers and aquifers. Let’s flow through the ways it can impact the water around you.

Effect on water quality

As rain falls on your street, that slow drip of motor oil that’s been collecting on the pavement from the neighbor's old car joins with other debris from rooftops and gutters including garbage, soil, fertilizers, pet droppings and road salt, sweeping everything into the storm drain and eventually into our drinking water system. Other potential sources of debris and contaminants including pollutants from residential, commercial, agricultural, and industrial properties, and livestock are also washed into the system. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), an average city block generates five times more runoff than a woodland area of the exact size.

Because of its sheer volume, most stormwater goes untreated. Historically, a good percentage of rain and snowfall would have been filtered naturally as it moved across grasslands and forests. However, urbanization and agriculture have changed land use in many areas, reducing the natural filtration and erosion protection around waterways that historically provided a natural cleaning process. Riparian zones, the land adjacent to waterbodies, is distinctly different from surrounding lands because of unique soil and vegetation interactions that occur at the water’s edge. As urban areas grew, riparian zones have decreased, greatly limiting the natural filtering of contaminants.

Why do we need to control it?

Polluted stormwater runoff is one of the most widespread causes of water pollution. Contaminants that cannot be adequately removed from the drinking water can endanger the health of both people and wildlife. Treating water that has been polluted costs communities more to bring drinking water into compliance with drinking water standards than treating pollutant-free clean water.

Additionally, soil deposited by stormwater in streams and lakes can smother the habitats of fish and other aquatic species. Fertilizers and nutrients can promote the growth of algae and other aquatic plant growth, which can harm aquatic wildlife, reduce the beauty of the waterbody, and affect recreational activities such as boating, swimming or fishing. Finally, bacteria carried by stormwater can render a water body unsafe for human contact, meaning recreational opportunities could be limited on the impaired water body.

How you can help?

Everyone can help keep the Brazos River basin clean. Here are a few tips that can help protect our environment:

• Don't put anything in storm drains. Storm drains and flood control channels carry surface runoff directly to the rivers and ocean without treatment. Make sure that runoff carries only rainwater.
• Avoid throwing litter into the street. Neighborhood pollution will flow into storm drains, clogging them and causing street flooding.
• Pick up after your pet. Animal waste, when not properly disposed of, washes down storm drains and contaminates waterways. Picking up pet waste is a courtesy for not only your environment, but for your neighbors and the public.
• Recycle your motor oil. There are gas stations, auto parts stores and repair shops that will collect and recycle used motor oil.
• Bag, compost or recycle grass clippings or leaves. Yard waste is a major contributor to clogged storm drains and street and neighborhood flooding.
• Use yard waste as mulch, natural fertilizer, or as ground cover. Nearly 20 percent of the waste buried in landfills is from our yards like grass and tree trimmings.
• Use double-sided photocopies. You can cut down on paper costs and reduce waste by making double-sided originals and copies whenever possible.
• Don't use toxic chemicals around the house. Select water-based products over solvent-based products when available (paint, glue, shoe polish).
• Clean up your yard. Have a bunch of old tires in your yard and don't know what to do with them? Find the nearest tire recycling location and/or the date of the next tire waste event.
• Don't flush hazardous materials. When flushed down a toilet, drain or sink, household waste goes through the sewage system to treatment plants not equipped to handle hazardous waste.
• Be mindful when you apply fertilizers or pesticides. Do not apply either before it rains. You will lose most of the chemicals through runoff, along with harming the environment. Do not over-water after application. Read the label to correctly apply.
• Purchase re-refined motor oil for your vehicle. Re-refined oil has been recycled and then reprocessed so it is just as good. By using re-refined motor oil, you are closing the recycling loop and saving natural resources.
• Report illegal dumping. Violations such as illegal dumping or other illegal activity should be reported immediately to either local law enforcement or the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality at 888-777-3186. For those living on a BRA reservoir, call the local lake office or the BRA main offices at 888-922-6272< or click here.

Being conscience of the consequences of stormwater pollution, and helping to keep the environment clean will ensure that recreational and drinking water sources will be safe for you and your community to enjoy. For additional information on stormwater and runoff go to www.epa.gov.